cpeters010's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Washington, D.C.

Site of the Union Station Train Crash

A 1,100-ton train fell through the floor in 1953. Workers got it patched up in just 72 hours.
Washington, D.C.

Russian Ambassador's Residence

Was there a small "backpack nuke" hidden in the attic? JFK apparently thought so.
Washington, D.C.

Letelier-Moffitt Monument

A diminutive memorial marks the site of a successful assassination by a right-wing death squad in America's capital.
Washington, D.C.

The Lockkeeper's House

A derelict bit of infrastructure from the canal that once ran through D.C. is landlocked in the heart of the city.
Washington, D.C.

Hinckley Hilton President's Walk

A hidden passageway now marks the site of an assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan that some say broke a 140-year-old curse.
Washington, D.C.

The Tabulating Machine Co.

The early data processor factory founded in Washington for the 1890 U.S. Census went on to become IBM.
Washington, D.C.

Capital Transit Co. Streetcar Barn

Before Metro, Washington had a robust streetcar network—and you see the remains of this infrastructure if you know where to look.
Washington, D.C.

Overthrust Fault

A surprising, but overlooked example of geology in the middle of the nation’s capital.
Washington, D.C.

Volta Laboratory & Bureau

Helen Keller once broke ground on this historic center for the study of technologies to benefit the hearing impaired.
Washington, D.C.

African-American Civil War Memorial

The first memorial dedicated solely to the Black troops who fought for the Union.
Washington, D.C.

D.C. War Memorial

An overlooked memorial honoring the local Washington residents who died in World War I.
Washington, D.C.

C&O Boat Elevator Ruins

This forgotten boat elevator was an engineering marvel in its heyday.
Washington, D.C.

Baptist Alley

This unassuming passageway played a key role in one of the most important events in U.S. history.
Washington, D.C.

Water Gate at the Watergate Complex

Before Nixon, "watergate" meant canals.
Washington, D.C.

'Cartwheel' Tower

Washington's top-secret Cold War-era doomsday communications tower is located in a small neighborhood park.
Washington, D.C.

Temperance Fountain

A much-maligned monument to teetotalism.
Washington, D.C.

Washington Aqueduct Castle Gatehouse

A building shaped like the Army Corps of Engineers logo, because why not?
Washington, D.C.

Godey Lime Kilns

A historic ruin just 20 feet away from a busy highway onramp.
Washington, D.C.

Serenity Statue

This poor little statue is the most vandalized memorial in Washington.
Washington, D.C.

Navy Yard Railroad Gun

One of the largest artillery pieces in the world sits in a Washington D.C. parking lot.
Washington, D.C.

Willard Hotel

Legend has it that President Grant’s frequent drinking in the lobby gave rise to the term “lobbyist.”
Washington, D.C.

Congressional Cemetery

The privately owned cemetery that holds room for Washington's finest when they step down from life.
Washington, D.C.

Florida Avenue Grill

The world's oldest soul food restaurant is also one of its best.
Washington, D.C.

Site of the Knickerbocker Disaster

You could be standing at the site of one of D.C.'s most fatal tragedies and not even know it.